FINALLY drove it! ... A few questions.

[Paul K.]

I finally drove my 41 Cab after a couple of years of on again, off again progress, but I have a few questions for the group. Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

1. Can the V-12s run on 6 cylinders and feel relatively smooth, just very slow? I also get an occasional backfire from the tailpipe when trying to start it cold and very infrequenty from the carb when warm. I had Jake do my coil and distributor, the compression is all good, 120 psi across, vacuum strong and a steady 19". Jake said my condensers were good, but they are OEM so I am getting new ones sent from Earle Brown.

2. It does not take the bumps very well, like the shocks are dead, can these older lever types be filled with oil?

3. The clutch does not engage until the pedal is pushed half way down. No grinding of the gears, just immediate engagement as soon as the pedal is released. All the adjustment is used up, which means the adjustment bar is as long as it can get. I would expect the clutch to act opposite of this if it were worn out.

Overall a solid car, quiet rear end, smooth trans, original 92k miles, just need to get more acceleration.

[peecher]

Paul, Yes the engine will run fairly smooth on 6 cylinders usually one bank or the other. I had this happen to me and it turned out that one set of points was barely sticking open ( not closing all the way). I tried all the usual checks, condensers, coil brushes and feed lines before discovering this. The "fix" in my case was to polish the pin the points rotate on.

The clutch pedal throw is fully adjusable and you can readjust to suit you. Some folks like the "quick" clutch release action as long as the gears don't clash. There should be a small cover over an opening on the transmission floor pan next to the accerator pedal to gain access to the clutch adjustment.

[abelincoln]

You can measure the voltage at the points when the engine is running, just look out for the fan! If they are not similar, 3 volts or so, one set of points is stuck open or closed. I had a NOS distributor, and one set was stuck. My local auto parts dealer had a small points file which solved the problem.

Abe

[CBoz]

I think my manual said about 1.5 - 2 inches of slack in the clutch pedal before engaging, but as others said, you can adjust it to what feels right. Yes, the shocks do need oil. It's a fairly light oil, you might try something like jack oil and see how that works.

The backfire suggests a timing problem to me, but others may have a different opinion.

[Mssr. Bwatoe]

Back firing and lack of power could be anything...

1- chk for spark on both banks..right/left..

2- spark good, dbl chk firing order,( wires in right holes)

3-accelerator pump hooked up, 3 holes to adjust placment, lean op wil cause pop on accel.

4- coil mis installed, coil brush / carbon not making good contact..

5- dist plates cracked , damaged..arcing inside dist..

[Paul K.]

I have been taking for granted everything is OK with the distributor, points and timing because I just had Jake do the coil but I will make those checks except for the timing because I do not have a distributor machine. I guess I could make some timing marks to find out if I have any advance or not.

As far as the clutch goes, I don't mind the quick release, but there is no more adjustment left to reduce the pedal travel. This seems opposite as a worn clutch will use all of the free play. I have too much and can't reduce it.

[peecher]

I suppose there could be enough wear in the linkage system to cause your adjustment problem but you might check to make sure the equalizer shaft and/or it's bearings are inplace on the the side cover of the transmission. Any extra movement of the equalizer shaft could cause your problem. Back firing out the exhaust would indicate unburnt fuel being ignited probably from the cylinder(s) not getting spark.

[Guest B1rdman]

you can set the points.

all you need is a .015 fealer gage and two six inch metal rulers.

and a ohm meter, or some kind of test light

also the book telling how to do it

gene

[Paul K.]

Birdman, do you have a copy of the instructions for this points adjustment procedure?

[DSpringer]

This is from my service manual. I haven't tried to use it.

Ignition Timing.pdf

[Paul K.]

Thanks so much for the info.

[Guest B1rdman]

i tryed to email you scans of how to do a dist,

came back as rejected no such email address

gene

[Guest B1rdman]

the scans are on the way

gene

[Paul K.]

Thanks to all, the V-12 is running well and I will be able to take it to a big car show here in San Diego at the Auto Museum in Balboa Park. 25 years ago, this Lincoln won an LCOC Western National meet 1st place. The last time it was shown was over 20 years ago. The previous owner got really old and couldn't care for the car and it deteriorated. It's a good feeling as we all know to take a great old car and bring it back to a respectable condition.